Always and Forever
by TwilightsGuardian
Summary: A little one-shot set at the 'good' ending of Shiki's route of the game but with a bit of a different twist than in the game. ShikixAkira


Hello everyone! I'm back with a small little one-shot I just had to write after watching the anime and the game play through Shiki's route for Togainu no Chi. This takes place with the 'good' ending of Shiki's (with the game), though I decided to change up the very ending part of it. So if you haven't watched the ending of the game play, probably a good idea to check that out first (I found them all on YouTube). Otherwise, enjoy the little one-shot!

-Always and Forever-

Akira and Shiki kept walking through the darkened tunnels of the sewer making their way to Nikkouren. Shiki still had his hand on Akira's arm, leading him along while Akira stumbled slightly to keep up with Shiki's pace. Akira had already asked how long it would take to get there and Shiki had merely replied with a short 'who knows' without stopping. Akira then had asked if he'd ever been the way they were going but the other had replied with a short 'no', yet kept walking and making his way through the tunnels like he knew the way. This left Akira a little confused and anxious but he didn't say anything as Shiki continued on, half dragging him still.

As they continued on, Akira also noticed that Shiki walked with the more confident gait he usually held, unlike with earlier with Nano's death and the sense of loss that Shiki seemed to give off. He knew that Shiki had certainly felt the loss of his foe quite intensely. He still wondered how Shiki was going to be like once they got out of the dark tunnels. If they ever got out anyway. After all, the red eyed man had been so adamant in his goal to fight Nano that he probably had never thought about anything after that once he'd reached his objective. Shiki didn't seem like one that had thought about a new goal and plans for the future once he'd killed Nano. It was no doubt he had that empty look in his eyes back there as Nano had laid on the cold, wet ground with the rain pelting down upon his corpse with Shiki, Arbitro, Akira, and the two executioners standing there.

Suddenly a loud sound from above rocked the ground and the tunnel around them. Akira nearly fell over at the sudden surprise but Shiki caught him and steadied him.

"W-what was that?" Akira asked surprised looking up through the darkness to the tunnel's ceiling above. "An explosion?"

"Hm. About time," Shiki replied quietly. Akira gave a confused look for a moment before realizing what was going on: the civil war between the CFC and Nikkouren had started. They stood there in the darkness for a little while as the vibrations from the attacks above continued before growing less and less and finally subsided.

Grabbing Akira's arm again, Shiki turned and continued on through the darkness once more. Akira let him lead him through the tunnels as they continued mostly in a straight line it seemed though with some turns here and there. He lost sense of where they'd come from and which way they were heading but he kept going; the sound of their footsteps the only thing in the silence for a while with the distant sound of another explosion above here and there.

As they continued through what seemed like an endless maze of the dark tunnels, Akira had questioning thoughts come to him. Shiki was still holding his arm and he could feel the red eyed man's warmth from his hand upon his skin. Why was he there leading him through these tunnels when he could have easily escaped from Toshima on his own? And certainly Shiki would have been able to get out of there a lot faster if he didn't have to drag him along. He was already quite dumbfounded when he showed up after Emma and Gwen had tried to take him into custody. Why was he helping him when all he'd been was a plaything to him on a whim it seemed? What were Shiki's intentions now?

"Why did you bring me along?" Akira finally spoke up quietly. His voice seemed to echo off the tunnel walls though, amplifying his voice.

"No particular reason," the red eyed man replied as he kept walking, not bothering to look back at Akira.

"Answer me," Akira prodded looking for an actual answer. Shiki kept walking but this time he looked back over his shoulder and Akira could see his eyes glittering their dark crimson color at him.

"Then I have a question for you as well. Why didn't you run away? I almost never locked the door to the room I kept you in. Surely you knew."

Akira blinked at Shiki's words. He didn't know himself why he had stayed either. With his body having submitted to Shiki's will while his mind had fought against it, it had left him in a bit of chaotic confusion. And given Shiki seemed to follow his own path without deviating from it, from starting to finish, his resolve that seemed so strong with his single-minded sense of purpose had drawn Akira to him in a weird sort of way.

"I...I don't know," Akira replied with a small shake of his head.

"Are you in any position to be demanding answers from me then?"

Akira blinked silently at Shiki's words but questioned him no further as they continued walking in silence with only the echoing sound of their footsteps bouncing off the dark walls around them. Again, the thoughts of what lied at the end of the path came to Akira's mind again as they continued on what seemed like forever in the darkness. Would they actually reach an end? What if there was nothing there? Nothingness itself seemed the most terrifying thing to him. He wondered if that's what Nano had been afraid of as well; envisioning nothingness of his future with the curse of the Nicole virus circling in his veins. Akira felt like he could relate because that same virus ran in his blood too, even if it had the opposite effect with neutralizing Line. He wondered then what did Shiki think about that; the blood that seemed no different than Nano's, Shiki's archenemy, running in his veins?

"W-what about eradicating my blood?" the fair haired boy finally spoke up in the silence between them. "Are you okay with not getting rid of me?" Shiki finally stopped and turned to look at him. "I've got the same virus, even if the effects are different."

The silence between the two of them seemed thick and heavy as red eyes looked to blue eyes. Akira wouldn't be surprised if Shiki would just turn and want to kill him because of his cursed blood. But he was surprised by the other's quiet response.

"You are mine. No more and no less."

Akira was at a loss for words as he stared at the red eyes looking back at him. A strange mix of feelings started to stir within him. Shiki turned and continued walking again, still holding his arm while Akira tried keeping up. The strange emotions weren't calming down within him though.

"Once we get out of here," Shiki started saying after a long stretch of silence between them as they continued walking, "go wherever you like."

Gaping at Shiki's back, Akira was dumbfounded by his words. The other kept walking, making no attempt to elaborate any further. Did this mean that Shiki was setting him free after all this time? Freedom from the bondage of the black clad man in front of him. It was all he'd wanted from the beginning since the day Shiki took him to that room in Toshima and claimed him as his plaything. And yet, with his words, he found it suddenly a little bit harder to breathe. Just what were Shiki's true intentions? His thoughts became a chaotic mess.

Suddenly he felt Shiki give a tug on his arm as he stopped.

"Look."

Looking past Shiki, he could see a single shaft of light quite a ways ahead. It seemed that this was the end of their destination and the darkness of the tunnel around them. And yet, Akira didn't want to go near it. Would it mean an end to Shiki and him since Shiki seemed to be letting him go free? Shiki continued towards it pulling Akira along anyway.

Coming to a halt, Akira still couldn't make himself go forward. Shiki turned to look back at the fair haired boy again. "What are you doing?" He gave a yank on his arm making him walk towards the shaft of light once again.

Squinting his eyes, Akira watched as the light came closer. It seemed so bright to his eyes from being in the dark for so long. Finally they stood looking up at the opening of the sewer above. Only then did Shiki let go of his arm before reaching for the rungs of the ladder leading up to the surface above.

"Shiki..." Akira started to say. Red eyes turned to look back at him. "I...I want..." He paused unsure why he was having troubles saying what he wanted to say. Hell why was he saying them to begin with? "I want to stay with you."

Shiki blinked at Akira's words. He wanted to stay with him after all he put him through? "Do you really?" he finally asked in a soft tone after a moment of silence. Blue eyes looked back at him with sincerity in them as the other boy nodded. "Fine then." Without another word, he turned and climbed up the ladder. Akira blinked before climbing up after him.

Once above on the surface, they found themselves on the grounds of a Nikkouren military garrison and their allies. Everyone seemed a bit frantic from the civil war that was threatening to explode into action but accepted both Shiki and Akira into their midst. Akira's charges were set aside while the fighting raged and later forgiven once the truth about Emma, being a CFC military agent, setting him up were found out.

With the fighting ending and Nikkouren emerging victorious and his charges cleared, both Akira and Shiki headed on their way. Shiki had kept his identity secret since of him being a known criminal. Only Akira knew who he was. He gave a false name to everyone else they crossed paths with. Even so they didn't stay long at their first several places, especially since after the war with Igura and Vischio being destroyed, many that held grudges against Shiki came looking for him wanting to claim his life. Both of them were able to fight them off before moving on to a new place. Though as time had passed, the number of attackers dwindled until it seemed that they might finally get a little peace and quiet.

* * *

><p>Akira gave a sigh as he came outside as late afternoon set in. It'd been a few months now without any sign of an attack from those out of Toshima. The peace had been kind of nice for a change. The air was cool and crisp of the autumn season and the ground was covered in red and gold leaves near the place that he and Shiki had found. It had a nice scenic view as well.<p>

Spotting the dark haired man sitting by himself under a tree with a few red and gold leaves left on the branches above, Akira made his way over to him and sat down beside him. Red eyes stared off into the distance silently and the two sat silently for a little bit while they enjoyed the peaceful silence. Finally Akira spoke up quietly.

"Hey Shiki?" His voice was soft as he turned his head slightly to look at the other. Shiki's tired gaze drifted from the distance to look at the fair haired boy out of the corner of his eyes. He spoke not a word, something that Akira had noticed lately. Shiki's fighting spirit had slowly started to diminish after leaving Toshima. He still helped fight off their attackers but with not as much fervor as he did back in Igura. He'd spoken less and less and the light in his eyes had seemed to dull over time. Akira had a feeling this would happen after Nano had been killed. "It's kind of nice and quiet for a change isn't it?"

Red eyes slowly shifted back to look in the distance again without a word. Akira gave a silent sigh at the silence that Shiki gave. He needed to snap him out of it somehow. He'd tried to in the past but seemed not to reach him. Maybe, just maybe, this time he could get through to him. He turned then to the other man determined to get him to say something.

"Shiki look at me." Red eyes slowly looked to him without a word still. "Please tell me what's going on in your mind." Red eyes continued to stare at him. "It's about Nano isn't it?"

Red eyes shifted to look down as Shiki turned his head away again. Akira gave a slight agitated sigh before reaching his hand up to the other side of Shiki's face and placed it against his cheek and turned his head to look at him. Red eyes still looked down not meeting his gaze.

"Shiki. Look at me." Slowly those red eyes looked back up at blue eyes staring at him with worry. "I worry about you, you know. You barely eat or drink anything. Barely talk anymore. Don't think I don't know what's going on. When Nano died, he took your fighting spirit with him didn't he?" Red eyes continued to stare at worried blue ones without a word. "You need to snap out of it. Remember back when Keisuke died and you showed up and all I wanted was for you to just kill me because I was distraught by his death?" Red eyes slowly glanced away and Akira knew Shiki remembered. "Instead of appeasing my wishes, you took me to that room and made me yours." He paused as he pulled up his shirt to bare his stomach where the silver piercing Shiki gave him what seemed so long ago still showed. Red eyes slowly looked to it then back up to the blue eyes still filled with worry.

Taking Shiki's hand, Akira placed it against his stomach so Shiki could feel the piercing still there as well. "I hated you for it; for seemingly breaking my spirit as well and claiming me as yours. And yet, I never ran away when you left when you never locked the door. You asked me once why I never ran away and I didn't have an answer then to give you. But now, I think deep down, even then, I felt something for you. I was just in denial at the time. And you, you led me out of Toshima even when you could have escaped by yourself. You felt something for me as well then too. And even though you said I could go anywhere I pleased once we left those tunnels, I chose to stay with you."

Dull scarlet eyes looked at Akira still half lifeless and blank. Finally, at last, the cool voice Akira missed spoke up quietly in barely a whisper. "You kept my 'proof' this whole time?" Even though it lacked the intensity it used to, Akira was still happy to hear it. He nodded to the red eyed man. "Why?"

"Because I...I am yours," Akira replied softly with a slight soft smile. He glanced down to Shiki's hand still held against his stomach at the piercing before looking back up into the scarlet eyes again. "And I...I love you Shiki." He felt his cheeks flush slightly with warmth. Shiki blinked at him and Akira could see the dullness seem to disappear ever so slightly in his eyes and be replaced with a small spark of surprise. It was a small sign of hope to him and he wanted to see more of it.

Letting go of Shiki's hand that was still against his piercing, Akira brought it up to Shiki's other cheek so both hands rested on either side of his face. Then leaning forward he brought his lips to the cooler ones before him and kissed him. He felt Shiki's hand against his piercing twitch slightly as he kissed him before the warm hand moved to pinch the piercing and move it ever so slightly between his fingers. The slight tugging feeling sent shivers through Akira's body just before Shiki returned the kiss as he slid his other hand up to thread through the silver blonde hair.

Giving a soft moan, Akira mentally smiled to himself at finally getting a response out of Shiki. He deepened the kiss as he shifted from sitting beside Shiki to straddling his lap and put both his hands on Shiki's shoulders. The red eyed man moved his hand from tugging slightly on the piercing up Akira's chest and pinched one of his nipples between his fingers. Akira gave another moan into the kiss.

Breaking the kiss to catch their breath, Akira looked into the scarlet eyes looking back at him. That small spark of surprise had turned to one of passion. It was there, deep down hidden behind the shadows that seemed to dull the glittering eyes he once knew. Now he just needed to pull it out and make Shiki see that Akira needed him; to give him a new reason to live his life and not become an empty shell.

"Shiki..." Akira spoke softly to him as he put his forehead against the other's forehead so their faces were inches from the other. "I need you. And not just because of the sex. I need you to be with me at my side; to see you smile and be like you used to be. I miss seeing that light in your eyes you had that said you'd take anyone down that stood in your way. Seeing you have a purpose in life like you used to with going after Nano." Red eyes glanced away at the mention of Nano's name. "I want to be your purpose in life." Red eyes returned to look back at the blue ones again. "Let me be yours and you will be mine. Let us live for the other, be strong for the other, and be strong for ourselves as well. Will you do that for me? Just don't lose yourself to being an empty doll. I couldn't take it to see you if you just became so lifeless."

Shiki looked at Akira and the worry and determination in those blue eyes of his. Akira had been so worried about him while all he'd done was wallow in the sense of loss that had come after Nano's death.

_"You've lost."_

Those last words that Nano had spoken still haunted him every day since. He had been surprised that Akira had stayed with him all this time even after telling him he could go free back in the tunnels. And in a way, deep down, he had been kind of glad that Akira stayed with him. He realized that if the fair haired boy hadn't stuck by his side, he'd have given up a long time ago. The attackers that had come for them out of Toshima would've certainly taken his life already. Even if he hadn't had the same adamant fervor he used to fighting them off, he still didn't want to see Akira to be killed by any of them. But with having such peace the past few months, it had left him with his thoughts about that day when he'd succeeded in taking out Nano. And he'd pulled away from Akira even more.

Now as he looked to those blue eyes before him after his confession of loving him and the surprise that the 'proof' he'd kept all this time sat before him, he found himself torn. The feelings of despair and emptiness that threatened to consume him seemed to come into question with Akira's feelings. He had been sure that all he wanted was to just let himself be lost in the darkness of his agony; to give up and not care anymore just as Akira had once felt when Keisuke died. He remembered then how annoyed he'd been to see Akira, the only person that seemed to stand against him and not beg for his life like so many others, just crumble and seek death. That had been one reason why he'd taken Akira to that room and claimed him. He'd been hoping to see if he'd fight back and regain that air of defiance. And now it seemed that Akira was trying to do the same back with him.

Feeling the fair haired boy's heartbeat against his hand where it still laid against his chest, Shiki contemplated what he was going to do. For so many years all he had focused on was Nano and beating him. That had been his only goal in life. What would have happened had he taken on Nano's 'cursed' blood and the pure Line virus back then? Would it have killed him? Or could it have given him much more power than he imagined? And what would Akira have done then? Would he have stayed with him had the pure Line not kill him? He suddenly wanted to know.

"What would you have done had I taken on the Line from Nano back then?" Shiki finally spoke up quietly. Akira blinked as he moved his head back a little from Shiki's. "If I had lived through it and been compatible with it? Would you have stayed with me then?"

Akira blinked again at Shiki's question. He had wondered that himself a bit too. What would have happened had he not called out to Shiki to stop him from taking on the Nicole virus from Nano directly? Would Shiki have changed if he had lived through it? It had seemed back then that Nano had wanted Shiki to take on the virus and see him fall to the same empty madness he felt. Then maybe he wouldn't have been so alone in the world. Could he have stayed with Shiki after that? The area around his piercing gave a slight throb suddenly.

"I...I would have stayed with you regardless," Akira replied looking back at the scarlet eyes still watching him. "It wouldn't have mattered what happened. I'm yours remember? I've been so since the day you claimed me."

Shiki blinked at the blue eyes looking back at him and could see the sincerity in them still with his words. Maybe this fair haired boy was the key to giving him a reason to live. The boy's words about loving him echoed in his mind. And he realized he couldn't stand to see those blue eyes filled with worry and sorrow towards him.

Blinking again at the boy still sitting there straddling his lap, Shiki closed his eyes and drew in a long breath and slowly let it out. With it, he let all the thoughts of Nano and the despair he felt clouding his mind slowly fade away to allow the words of Akira's to shine.

Akira watched the shadows in Shiki's eyes seem to quiver after his last statement, the small spark of light in them seemed to be fighting almost as well. Crimson eyes stared at him for several moments in silence before Shiki shut them and inhaled a slow, deep breath. As he exhaled it slowly, Akira wondered what his eyes would show when he opened them again. He hoped they wouldn't be the darkened, lifeless eyes he'd been seeing since that day so long ago.

Slowly, crimson eyes opened again and Akira saw that the dark shadows that had dulled his eyes seemed less prominent now. Instead that light they used to have back in Toshima had started to push through making them give that old glittering look a little. It wasn't as vivid as back then but it was better than the dull, lifelessness they had held for a long time. He couldn't help but give a small, slight smile.

"Will you promise me something?" Shiki spoke up, his voice still quiet but seemed a little less empty now.

"Anything," Akira replied.

"Promise me you'll never leave me."

"I promise," Akira nodded in reply.

Shiki's lips slowly gave a soft slight smile. And not like the smiles that had been cold and calculating or cocky back in Toshima. No, this one was a pure genuine smile of happiness. Akira had to give a blink to it for it was the first time he'd ever seen Shiki smile like this. To be honest, it made his features softer and him more handsome than before despite having gotten quite pale from being so depressed.

"Then will you promise me something as well?" Akira asked as the crimson eyes looking back at him gave that slight glittering look in them still. Shiki tilted his head slightly. "Will you promise that you won't give up so easily on life from now on? I don't know what I'd do with you if you just became a lifeless doll."

Shiki looked at the blue eyes that still had the look of worry in them. He pulled his brows together slightly before giving a slight nod. "I promise I will try," he replied with a soft tone.

Akira gave a nod. He knew that it would take some time for Shiki to get back to normal, or as close to normal as possible, for he knew that the loss he'd gone through from Nano's death wasn't something that could just be erased easily. But he was happy that Shiki seemed to want to try. He leaned forward again and captured the scarlet eyed man's lips in a soft kiss that was deepened by the other. He could still feel Shiki's one hand in his hair and the other on his chest that dropped down to the piercing again and lightly tugged on it again a moment before tracing his fingertips lightly around it. The fluttery feeling he had in his stomach combined with Shiki's fingers lightly on his skin and the coolness of the autumn air sent shivers through him. And as Shiki left his lips and kissed down his jaw to his neck, he couldn't help but give a soft moan.

"Someone miss me that much?" Shiki asked softly as Akira felt his lips curve into a slight smile against his neck as he gave another tug at the piercing again. He was answered with another soft moan from the fair haired boy and the feeling of him getting aroused since he was still straddling his lap.

Given that they had been too distracted by the raging civil war then keeping a constant watch out for the attackers from Toshima day and night and Shiki's deepening depression, they really hadn't had any time for themselves like this. Pretty much since back then in Toshima, Akira hadn't had anything like this at all. He had to relieve himself whenever he needed it. And Shiki...well he had been too depressed to really seem to want to do anything much. Of course, Akira had tried to help him a couple of times but to no avail of sparking anything in the empty crimson eyes.

"M-maybe we should go back inside," Akira half moaned as Shiki ran his hand along his stomach lightly again. Shiki gave a soft chuckle as he pulled back from the fair haired boy's neck and looked to see his face all flushed a soft pink. Granted there wasn't a lot of people around from the decline in the population in the area, but still he knew Akira wouldn't want to be out in the open for what was to come next.

Pulling his hands away from the fair haired boy, Shiki let him stand before standing himself. He turned and took Akira's hand and pulled him towards the house they had taken for themselves and went inside. He pulled him into the little bedroom there and pushed Akira towards it. The other boy's legs hit the side and he fell back onto it as Shiki followed on top of him and entwined his fingers with the other's and kissed him. Then he let go of his hands and moved to rid him of his jacket and shirt and tossed them to the floor before ridding himself of his own shirt and jacket.

Leaning down, Shiki kissed at his neck then trailed down to his chest and nipped at one of his nipples while trailing one hand down to the piercing and twisted it slightly between his fingers and gave it soft tugs. Akira gave a moan at the ripples of pleasure that spread through his body. Shiki moved to the other side of his chest and teased him there as well before pulling back and moved both hands down to the fair haired boy's waist and unbuckled his belt. He tugged his jeans down with his boxers and off him before doing the same to himself so they were both unclothed.

Wrapping his hand around Akira's arousal, Shiki started massaging him as the fair haired boy tilted his head back and gave a moan. A soft smirk played at Shiki's lips as he leaned down and captured his lips in a kiss again. After a few minutes, he pulled his hand back from the boy below him and moved so he could open his legs before slowly entering the smaller boy below him.

Giving a groaning moan as he closed his eyes, Akira felt Shiki enter him slowly and more gentle than in the past back in Toshima until he was all the way in. He opened his eyes as Shiki held still and looked up at the crimson eyes looking back down at him. The action had Akira blinking a little at him for being gentle this time. It was kind of a nice change, yet he kind of missed the roughness. He'd always been a glutton for pain and punishment.

Shiki looked down at the blue eyes looking up at him as he held still and let the other get used to him after all this time. Of course, after a moment, the other boy shifted and squirmed a little. A slow smirk crept across Shiki's pale lips. "You really have missed me that much?" Akira responded with a soft moan as Shiki shifted slightly.

"P-please," Akira whispered softly to the semi-glittering eyes back at him. Shiki gave another slight smirk before capturing Akira's lips in a kiss and started thrusting in and out of him. Akira moved his arms to wrap around Shiki's neck and arched his back moaning loudly as Shiki hit a sensitive spot. Shiki gave another soft smirk as he moved to hit that spot again and kissed down to Akira's neck as he wrapped his arms around the other.

Continuing thrusting in and out, Akira continued moaning and writhing under Shiki. The friction between them was causing Akira's arousal to harden more and more. Finally, Akira felt himself going over the edge as Shiki thrust in again, arching his back, and moaned loudly. "Sh-Shiki."

Shiki felt Akira tighten around him as he moaned out his name. He thrust in a few more times before feeling himself finally release as waves of pleasure spread throughout his body as he knew Akira felt before collapsing down on the other boy, face buried in his shoulder. His heart beat fast and wild in his chest and he could feel Akira's beating just as fast against him as their breathing was ragged from the excitement.

Finally after several minutes of catching their breath, Shiki pulled back to look down at the passion glazed blue eyes looking back up at him. He reached a hand up and brushed the sweaty, light colored hair out of Akira's face before giving him a deep kiss, pulling out of the other boy, and rolled to the side.

Looking to Shiki beside him, Akira smiled softly at seeing the crimson eyes looking back glazed over in passion and giving a soft yet intense glittering. He rolled over and half snuggled up against Shiki, who gave a blink at him as he buried his face against his chest, inhaling Shiki's scent.

"I love you Shiki," Akira spoke softly as he wrapped an arm around the other, glad to see that the red eyed man was slowly returning back to normal. He felt Shiki's hand brush at the hair on the back of his head as he wrapped his other arm around him and pulled him close, feeling Shiki's breath on the top of his head.

"I love you too Akira," Shiki replied as he held him close and closed his eyes breathing in the fair haired boy's scent. He was very glad to have him there with him indeed; a light in the darkness. "Always and forever."

* * *

><p>Well that's the little one-shot. It's my first time writing something so short (since normally I end up doing long stories). But I thought I'd give it a try. I hope you all enjoyed it though!<br>Anyways, all comments and reviews are welcome!  
>Also, hope everyone has a great holiday whether you celebrate Christmas, Yule, Kwanzaa, Hanukah, or any other holiday I didn't name. May it be wonderful and well!<p> 


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